A honest question from a Kiwi about Richie and Australia

[ACR]

lol. Rugby is funny sometimes. That yellow in the video is a direct result of the Force being so useless at getting to the ruck, it is the fact that the 11 comes in from the side to clean him out and then fails miserably that Richie falls to his feet. Still Richie's fault but one of those annoying ones you hate giving away when you are in clear position to win the ball.

 

[Waylon]

Hey all, I have been around these boards for a while and while not a mad writer as some here (yes hugh jarse I am looking at you lol) I have been a life long lover of rugby and in particular the great rivalry between the All Blacks and the Wallabies.

I remember as a child watching with absolute dismay as names like Campese and Farr-Jones were cried out as they crossed the line against us or watched a bone crunching tackle from George Smith turning over vital ruck ball that would be spun out to the most dangerous back line in the world. I remember attending my first live game in 1992 and watching those men in gold trotting out to do war with the old foe again.

But recently I have had a question that keeps buzzing around my head and I thought why not put myself firmly into it and ask the question here on a forum where I know I will get input from Aussies and Kiwis who are educated about the game and love it as much as I do.

The question is this: Why is Richie hated by alot of people in Australia in particular?

I mean he does infringe I do not deny this at all but Australia has David Pocock who is just as bad and George Smith who was regularly penalized at the break down, Phil Waugh was often pinged as well and there are no rabid protests over them. I have seen people blame him but the refs control the game and given his 112 match background and zero yellow card count surely this would count for something?

I am reminded of the Richard Hadlee saga where he was abused by Australian crowds for being one of the best there was in what he did. I have been told by aussie friends of mine that the more stick you are given the more aussies like you because if they didn't give a crap then they would not acknowledge you in the first place but it just leaves me confused. I understand not liking a player, there are many that I do not but it seems rather personal when it comes to Richie and I thought I would ask and see what the green and gold members here can do to help educated me.

Cheers all

codex

McCaw is about the only kiwi I like

He is modest. He has humility. He has enormous ability, ticker, tenacity and skill

I was actually happy he held Bill aloft. The bloke deserved it more than most who have played the game

He has a rare motor. His toughness is amazing

 

[Dan54]

Well Codex, funnily enough I agree with most of the Aussie boys here, I don't think hate is the word, just perhaps irritating respect, because he plays so well for opposition. I wasn't a kid when Campese played (unfortunately already all grown up) and I can assure you plenty of kiwis didn't like Campo (ok and a few Aussies), but for much the same reason, he was a bloody good, he used to tear us up at times, we never really contained him, so some unfortunates have got to pick rubbish him. Mate I can tell you I used to get into great arguments when I said I would always pick him. You always have to accept , that as Waylon says that a some Aussies just don't like Kiwis at all and so Richie who is high profile is a great target.

 

[Bon]

I am in my seventies, played rugby,watched rugby all my life. In that time I've seen a lot of players from many countries in action. Can't think of one that I seriously disliked,even among the players I knew. In one team I was picked for we toured in Australia, [more than fifty years ago]. The hospitality and kindness we had showered upon us was amazing. Back then there wasn't the amount of ill feeling evident as witnessed today. Spectators didn't boo the goal kicker etc, Todays crowds behave like they are in a Roman colosseum. Their attention span is minimal so dedicated rugby followers have to put up with rude behaviour and dumb mexican waves. With regard to Ritchie, I consider him to be our best loose forward ever, and understand why he frustrates opposing teams, and their supporters as much as he does.Sure he is a bloody nuisance onfield, but off the paddock he is as fine a human being as you could ever wish to meet.
Oh, and I liked David Campese, he was a great ambassador for the game,which he always played in great spirit.

 

[Scarfman]

Oddly enough I really like Ali Williams. Him and Dan Carter, for quite different reasons, are my favourite Kiwi players from the last few years.

 

[daz]

Had dinner with Richie once. He arrived 2 steps in front of me and managed to get a seat before our table was ready. Then wouldn't let go of the plate of cold cuts until the waiter asked for the third time.

Finished his dessert while I was still halfway through my main course, then walked out with a silver salt shaker held aloft in one hand and a glowing reference from the restaurant owner in the other.

Think it might be in his DNA.

Irritating man, but very hard not to like.

 

[wamberal]

How can we hate one of our little cousins from across the dutch?


Richard Loe would be the exception.

 

[MajorlyRagerly]

Well well well... a thread on Sir Ruchard on GAGR.. what is the world coming to.

Codex - I think you are suffering from selective reading issues - something that many of us, including yours truly, suffer from sometimes.

Reality is that if you read all of GAGR and indeed, all of the comments beneath that article, majority of comments about His Richieness are of positive tone. There is certainly no/little comments on his character as a person & it would be fair to say he is almost universally respected. Those that do seem to genuinely hate him really are few and far between - and you surely can't be expecting 100% take up of the quite accurate "Richie is God" mantle, we Kiwis grant him.

There are of course seasoned anti-Richie campaigners on here, and like everybody else, they are entitled to their view. It is a bit frustrating though that they seem to be able to back it up with evidence though isn't it - regardless of how cycloptic in nature it may seem. Let them be.

 

[cyclopath]

Well well well. a thread on Sir Ruchard on GAGR.. what is the world coming to.

Codex - I think you are suffering from selective reading issues - something that many of us, including yours truly, suffer from sometimes.

Reality is that if you read all of GAGR and indeed, all of the comments beneath that article, majority of comments about His Richieness are of positive tone. There is certainly no/little comments on his character as a person & it would be fair to say he is almost universally respected. Those that do seem to genuinely hate him really are few and far between - and you surely can't be expecting 100% take up of the quite accurate "Richie is God" mantle, we Kiwis grant him.

There are of course seasoned anti-Richie campaigners on here, and like everybody else, they are entitled to their view. It is a bit frustrating though that they seem to be able to back it up with evidence though isn't it - regardless of how cycloptic in nature it may seem. Let them be.

What you talkin' about, Willis? I don't hate him!!

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

I certainly bear no ill-will towards McCaw. He's in the top echelon of the best players I've ever seen and an absolute gent to go with it. He's really everything you want in a top line sportsman: someone who is supreme on the paddock and a guy you'd like to have a beer with after the game. I can't really give any higher praise than that.

I think you'll find that a lot of other Aussies feel the same way. He's nothing more than a pantomime villain, in the same way that Campo would have been in NZ.

 

[daz]

I think you'll find that a lot of other Aussies feel the same way. He's nothing more than a pantomime villain, in the same way that Campo would have been in NZ.

Except Campo really is a bit of a knob. A Wallaby hero, but a slight tool none-the-less.

Yeah, I said it. You all thought it, anyway!

 

[Bullrush]

I was at Game 1 in Sydney this year. Probably around the 60-min mark we all jumped up for some reason (a penalty or something) and the guy behind me made a remark something like 'that Richie McCaw is a fuken prick'. I turned around and the guy looked straight at me and said, 'Yeah that's right - he's a prick.' I had my AB jersey on (obviously) and while I wanted to give him a couple of quick straight jabs, I just said something along the lines of 'yeah, well he's a RWC-winning-captain-prick and we'll take him thanks'.

The guy was a middle-aged white guy, quite well-dressed and I was pretty surprised to hear the genuine spite in his voice as there had been some pretty good ribbing and joking from different Wallaby fans around us up until then.

That's the worse I've experienced and like everyone else has said - I think it's pretty measured here.

I actually hate Richie McCaw every time he pulls on a Canterbury jersey

 

[scaraby]

How can we hate one of our little cousins from across the dutch?


Richard Loe would be the exception.

Gonna get killed for this one...was lucky enough to have lunch with Richard a couple of years ago. He would have to be one of the best blokes I've met. Quiet country guy who loves a beer and a chat and has some great yarns particularly about his "training" in the french provincial front rows. Guess the "what goes on the field stays on the field" still applies.

 

[Jnor]

I was at Game 1 in Sydney this year. Probably around the 60-min mark we all jumped up for some reason (a penalty or something) and the guy behind me made a remark something like 'that Richie McCaw is a fuken prick'. I turned around and the guy looked straight at me and said, 'Yeah that's right - he's a prick.' I had my AB jersey on (obviously) and while I wanted to give him a couple of quick straight jabs, I just said something along the lines of 'yeah, well he's a RWC-winning-captain-prick and we'll take him thanks'.

The guy was a middle-aged white guy, quite well-dressed and I was pretty surprised to hear the genuine spite in his voice as there had been some pretty good ribbing and joking from different Wallaby fans around us up until then.

That's the worse I've experienced and like everyone else has said - I think it's pretty measured here.

I actually hate Richie McCaw every time he pulls on a Canterbury jersey

In the heat of battle I've thought - never said - things like that, if only because it is the most frustrating thing in the world to see your team constantly go down to the best in the world in the most uninspiring way.

I doubt anyone really has that level of spite for a player on an individual level. I know you Kiwis see what we talk about on here but I don't think it's possible for you to understand just what being a Wallaby supporter watching Bledisloe games over the last few years has been like - that pit in your stomach usually about 15-20 min, sometimes 60 if you're lucky, where you just know that there's no way you're going to win.

It's nothing like the contests of the 90s and early 2000s where the games went down to the wire and it was never that bad even if you lost cos it had been a ripper of a contest.

But I digress

 

[MajorlyRagerly]

In the heat of battle I've thought - never said - things like that, if only because it is the most frustrating thing in the world to see your team constantly go down to the best in the world in the most uninspiring way.

I doubt anyone really has that level of spite for a player on an individual level. I know you Kiwis see what we talk about on here but I don't think it's possible for you to understand just what being a Wallaby supporter watching Bledisloe games over the last few years has been like - that pit in your stomach usually about 15-20 min, sometimes 60 if you're lucky, where you just know that there's no way you're going to win.

It's nothing like the contests of the 90s and early 2000s where the games went down to the wire and it was never that bad even if you lost cos it had been a ripper of a contest.

But I digress

We're also Black Cap supporters. We know the feeling of watching a game slip from your fingers around the 15-20 min mark and the 60 min mark if your lucky.

 

[Braveheart81]

We're also Black Cap supporters. We know the feeling of watching a game slip from your fingers around the 15-20 min mark.

I.e. when the Black Caps are 2 for 3 and you can't be completely sure which one is the runs and which one is the wickets.

 

[ACT Crusader]

In the heat of battle I've thought - never said - things like that, if only because it is the most frustrating thing in the world to see your team constantly go down to the best in the world in the most uninspiring way.

I doubt anyone really has that level of spite for a player on an individual level. I know you Kiwis see what we talk about on here but I don't think it's possible for you to understand just what being a Wallaby supporter watching Bledisloe games over the last few years has been like - that pit in your stomach usually about 15-20 min, sometimes 60 if you're lucky, where you just know that there's no way you're going to win.

It's nothing like the contests of the 90s and early 2000s where the games went down to the wire and it was never that bad even if you lost cos it had been a ripper of a contest.

But I digress

Ah yes it was I remember when Matt Burke kicked that last minute penalty and I was extremely upset, so much so in a very calm manner I asked the guests that were at my house to leave. That was after I threw the remote at the wall.....

Always liked Campo, but you did cheer that little bit louder when he knocked on or shanked a kick or dropped a ball. But loved watching him pllay.

As for Richie I never thought I would see someone surpass the way Kronfeld attacked the breakdown, and Richie has done that. He has become a ruthless competitor and still recall the bewildered naive Richie of that 2003 RWC semi where he tried to win that game by himself to what we saw last year and this year. He has improved each year and watching him in black and red n black has been great over the years.

 

[Bullrush]

Ah yes it was I remember when Matt Burke kicked that last minute penalty and I was extremely upset, so much so in a very calm manner I asked the guests that were at my house to leave. That was after I threw the remote at the wall...

.....or when Kefu scored that last min try....or Matt Rogers.....or Eales made that kick....

 

[JJJ]

I think what tends to irritate Aussies isn't so much McCaw himself as the kiwi preciousness that surrounds him. eg they'll concede (smugly) in the vaguest possible terms that he "gets away with a lot" or "pushes the limits of the law likeanygoodsevendoes", but stridently deny any specific instance of wrong-doing.

Likewise they'll brook no unfavourable comparison in any facet of the game with any other opensider. This has become most noticeable for Aussies with Pocock's growth as a pilferer and McCaw's relative withdrawal from that area. Instead of conceding that Pocock is currently stronger over the ball, they'll insist that McCaw has "evolved" his game beyond fetching, with the implication that if he wanted to regress back to his earlier MO he'd still be better at it. And every match where the ABs beat the wobs is hailed as indisputable proof of McCaw's direct dominance over Pocock. Oh, and the OUTRAGE over the QC (Quade Cooper) push to the head!

It's a tiny bit like the preciousness of Sri Lankans about Murali.

But McCaw himself seems like a true gent. I'd much rather have a beer with him than with any number of wallabies.

 

[daz]

the guy behind me made a remark something like 'that Richie McCaw is a fuken prick'.

I have had the same thoughts about one J. Wilkinson in the past, but maybe that's just me.